Christmas is coming!

Christmas is coming! Christmas is coming!

We all know what that means. People have been acquiring, making and sending stuff to family, friends, and loved ones.

My roommate and I have been shopping. Psst. Found really great deals at Old Navy. So great, it was practically a steal, like about $2 a shirt kind of steal. Amazing. Also amazing were the long sleeve basic tees we picked up from J. C. Penney. They were less than $5 a shirt. All of the ON stuff will be our spring time wardrobe. I talked her into treating herself at H&M to a new coat. She had never been in one before. I had to assure her that she would like what she got from there if it was made from a woven material. I have. If we had more time, I would have tried on some dresses. Gotta love the little black dress. Something I have found while doing some shopping for myself is that you should NEVER ever skimp on is a bra. It is okay if the bra is on sale, but if it is selling for $5 at regular price, keep walking. I saw this one at $5 thought it would be awesome, but then I stretched the band. It stretched like the maker used old elastic. Then we found bras for $7, on clearance of course. SCORE! Sad to say that 3 of mine died within the month. Well, enough about unmentionables and sales.

Of the stuff that is made or being made, socks, baby socks, scarves, hats, and those hunting convertible mitts are finally done. There are still some things on my to do list, like the never ending striped blanket of doom.

We know how arduous it can be to send stuff out at this time of year. Most things even if sent out today, might not show up until after Christmas. I don't know about you and your family, but my family are all okay with things not being on time. Early, late, it doesn't matter as long as you were thinking of them. We already celebrated Christmas on Veteran's day. It was also our Thanksgiving time so that was 2 birds with one stone. Anything they receive now is just a bonus.  I love those guys.
On its way out are projects I should have finished a week or two ago. Some more baby socks, Mom's scarf of psychedelic colors, a pair of adult socks. Amazing how a common cold can back up a person's plans. Oh and on that note, I should probably visit the post office tomorrow. People want their requested gifts.

Until next time, this has been one more post without pictures. Take care and have a Merry Christmas, God Jul, and good night!

Small Versus Large

Hello again Readers and friends,
Jefferjean here. There has been a debate of small projects versus large. Would you rather make a lot of tiny small projects and feel the quick release of a project done or would you rather be dive into a large project and feel a great accomplishment when it is finished? I have found that if I am involved in a large project that I become bored with it quickly. Some projects look easy but are just time consuming. There are several unfinished objects (UFOs) sitting in a bin waiting for their turn to be finished. One of these is an overgrown king-sized blanket to be finished at some point. The UFOs in my bin are growing ever so quickly.
Recently I have put aside a half finished man's glove just to work up some smaller items.  The small items, such as the tiny socks I have made for a soon-to-be newborn, make it worth it. The quick joy of the small projects are beginning to pale in comparison to the amount of projects that need to be finished.
To keep things on track sometimes we need to put projects on a timeline with a set calendar date. Does this sound familiar? Maybe that essay you had to write for your Senior year English class, maybe even that thesis you needed for graduate school? I have yet to make it to graduate school, but my projects are needing that set timeline. By December 9th, a pair of baby boy's socks will need to be finished and mailed to Texas.  Before "deer season" the gloves I have mentioned being half "cooked" will be or should be done. By Christmas, through hell or high water, that overgrown King-sized blanket will be done. After that there will be a celebration for finishing off a monster. Just like toe-socks, I may never do a king sized blanket again or at least for a very long time. From this I have learned that small projects are meant for me. Pros can have all of the large projects that they can do. Hats, socks, and cardigans are for me! Hey, hey!
I would love to hear of your stories of a large UFO waiting in your to-do pile. Until then, this is Jefferjean signing off.

Fell in love with a Singer

Hello and how are my fellow crafty readers? I'm excited. Why? Yesterday my roommate and I found and fell in love with a Singer. No, not a someone like Frank Sinatra, but a something, like a lovely vintage Singer straight stitch sewing machine. This, my friends, is a well-oiled sewing machine. It was found at a thrift store no less. If you follow the blog, Male Pattern Boldness, (like I do) then you will know that anyone can come across a gem like this. Peter just either has more luck or is in a better location to find these wonderful machines. I know he's in a better location. Heck, he's in NY!
But I digress. This gem was hiding in its scratched up table in said thrift store. And yes it is a wonderful thing to have a machine and its own table/hiding place. The table provides a flat surface to work on when the machine is pulled up and out of its cubby. It also usually has a storage area for a few bobbins, thread spools and things. To the untrained eye, the sewing machine table looks like an average side table. When you pick it up unknowingly, you may be surprised that it is so heavy. It is heavy because the machine that is so neatly tucked away inside is HEAVY. Yeah, this little baby is pure metal with a touch of oil.
Oh, I am so excited about this new-to-me sewing machine that I have nearly run out of words. When we checked it at the store, we used a piece of paper to sew on, and it through it like butter. So amazing.
Dear Readers, I hope that you too can find your very own gem in the rough. And be wary of these side table look-a-likes. There may very well be a sewing machine in there waiting to steal your heart away!

Jefferjean still exists

Hey guys. I know... it has been a while. You could say that I fell off the face of the Earth.  There have been major changes in my life.  As you well know, I was uncraftily busy helping my parents pack up their house. During that time I was working for the man and living in the country/boondocks where even cell phones can hardly register if at all.  To say the least, internet did not exist.  For the month of July I was camping. Again, internet access did not readily exist.  It was few and far between when I could even write an email.
Now, I have moved even farther from the east coast.  This time I am writing you from Missouri. But Wait! There is internet access. My roommate and I will have to work something out though.  Her current plan only allots a limited amount of data to use a month.  It has already run out so I'm writing this from a local coffee shop/deli.
And onto Good News!
I will have internet readily from the condo. I am enjoying the new location.  While I was MIA crocheted can cozies happened (some in camo colors) these were given away to my dad's friends. A hat was commissioned by a friend for a lady taking chemo. Another hat was requested and made for a young man.  He was so delighted that he requested also a pair of uniquely designed gloves for hunting.
These are not your average gloves. They deserve their own paragraph.  I say unique because I have never heard of gloves where the last three were fingerless gloves hiding under a convertible mitt. I am not sure of the reason for this. Maybe you do? If you can come up with any answers I'll be glad to hear them. Until then, we are just left to speculate. For now I bid you adieu, my friends.

Long time missing.

Hey guys,
Have you ever started a large project thinking, "oh, I can do this!," just to turn around, get distracted and wind up never finishing it?  Well I sure have.  For the past few weeks some of the projects that I started have done just that.  My brother's king-sized blanket has been waiting for awhile since it is so huge and practically unmanageable.  It still sits 10' wide by 4' long.  Some day it will be finished. Oh, and this blog also got pushed aside since I finally have an hourly paying job and a different place to live. To anyone who actually wanted to keep track of this blog, I am truly sorry.  I will try and make it up to you.
About the time this blog was started, it was also time for the daffodil festival in Jackson.  An idea was put into my head to crochet some up and my hand did make a few. There are many prototypes but only just a few worthwhile daffodils waiting to be turned into pins.
There is one project that I have been making more progress on, even if slow.  The tatted cardigan that I dreamed up finally has the body. Now to get the arms done on it. It is made of a white cotton crochet thread and tatted into bookmark-like sections. It resembles a table runner in a way.  It is one project that I might not ever be able to give or sell with as much time I have put into it.
Along with crocheting and tatting, I have been trying for years to get a steady hand at sewing.  I have successfully made a drawstring bag and a wearable blouse. Recently, I have acquired several mens western-style button-ups that are needing some attention if I am ever going to use them or sell items made from them. Not only did I acquire these shirts, I've acquired more fabric and even reclaimed some forgotten crochet thread while helping my mother pack up her house. Do you know what this means? If you guessed more wares for sale, you may be right. Just as soon as I get those pin backs on them.  ;)
For now, take care folks and stay crafty!

Uncraftily busy

Notes to Self:

Project Pictures
When finished with a project.... TAKE A PICTURE!!!

Pictures on Etsy
When posting pictures on Etsy, use Windows not Linux.  The pictures will likely be uncooperative and not stay rotated.

Packing
Mom's house stuff needs to be all packed up by Thursday night. Friday it will be loaded into a trailer. Saturday it will travel.


Well guys, this is what I have consuming me for the week. Cleaning, packing, and if I can get anything else done I'll be back to post it. When I was asked to pack up the house, I got it started and made a decent dent in it. Last week or two I took a break from packing and concentrated more on crafting and getting both my Etsy shop and this blog started.  Last Thursday and Friday, I volunteered my time at the local thrift shop to get it in order and ready with Spring clothes.  Now I am left with today and 3 more days to find boxes and get the rest of the house ready for travel.  It feels good to have a deadline.
Does anyone else have this next problem?  For some unknown reason, I cannot ever seem to remember to take a picture of finished projects before they change hands.  Saturday, I made a hat for a lovely, thoughtful lady that is going through chemo treatments.  It was off to its new owner before anyone thought to take a picture of it. *sigh* Guess another one will have to be made just so I can show off what I've done. Oh well.
If some more down time is found, I will attempt to get further on a monstrous blanket that I swore to make for my oldest brother.  Oh, it is only 10 feet wide and 4 feet long so far. There are 3 more feet in length yet to go. It is all crocheted so a person would think it could be done up quick, right? WRONG. That width seems to be unwieldy. Next time I attempt something like that please stop me or suggest a different strategy than what I've done.
There is a shrug also being made but nothing like what I've seen or done before.  I learned to tat within the past year. I have gotten the hang of making small doilies, edgings, and bookmarks.  One of those offhand brilliant ideas has me starting to needle tat up a shrug a small section at a time. I'll let you know how that goes.
Well, down time is over. Back to packing up the house.
Take care folks.
-Jefferjean

Dear Readers,
What do you do when you venture into the world of Etsy?  You post about it to the online world via blog, twitter, and facebook.  What if words aren't your forte'?  Heh, you blog about it anyway.  How else does a person expect to get better at writing?
I have friends who make a living off of their words and ideas.  To be specific, Thursday is a wonderful writer and friend.  I could read and listen to what she has to say all day long. There are so many ideas waiting to burst forth from that brilliant and creative mind of hers.  If you can get past the amazement from her being so awesome, you can learn a thing or two.  If you ever want to learn about writing for a living or being a small business owner, she is the go to gal.  She helps to steer others in the right path.  For a price, she'll even help you set up a website.  She has even published her own books. Yeah, she has talent for miles,
Anyway, writing about her has made it easier for me to blog with words and not pictures.  I may not be posting pictures now of Works In Progress (WIP) but just you wait.  I am sure there will be some.
Sincerely,
Jefferjean